Bill-file



(ModeL) S. THOMPSON.

BILL FILE.

Patented Aug. 30, 1881.

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NITED STATES PATENT Onrrce...

SMITH THOMPSON, OF WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, ASSIGNOR OF FOUR-FIFTHS TO CYRUS O. TURNER, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, AND THOMAS TURNER, OF MOUNT STERLING, KENTUCKY.

BILL-FILE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 246,572, dated August 30, 1881.

Application filed January 6, 1881. (Model) To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, SMITH THOMPSON, a citizen of theUnited States, residing at Washington, in the District of Columbia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in File-Holders and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertainsto make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters or figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention is an improvement on billfiles, for which Letters Patent of the United States were granted to me February 26,1878, and numbered 200,675 5 and it consists in the construction and arrangement of the several parts hereinafter fully described, and specifi- 2o cally pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure l is a vertical section, Fig. 2 an end elevation, and Fig. 3 a detail view, of a bill-file containing myimprovements.

a is the outer casing, and b is the inner casin g, both constructed substantially as the outer and inner casings in my former patent.

c is an adjustable compressor placed within the inner casing. It is supported by the side bar,'c. The compressor and the side bars are so arranged that they form a frame which slides snugly into the inner casing, as shown. The side bars are provided with a longitudinal slot, 0 which fits over a pin or stud, d, pro- 3 5 jecting from the side of the casing b. The inner end of this pin and the slot 0 maybe covered by a shield, 0 arranged on the inner side of the side bar, as shown in Fig. 3. The side bars, being made of thin metal, will slide into or out of the casing without interfering'with the inclos'ed files. This compressor is adjustable to or from the bottom of the casing, as shown in Fig. 1, and can be set to hold a larger or smaller number of files, as may be desired. 5 The side bars will turn on their pivots d, and

their inner ends may be pressed against the top, bottom, or ends of the casing, and thus lock the compressor in any desired position.

The compressor may be set at the position marked 00, Fig. 1, where it will serve as a ful- 5o crum or support for the files when the latter are being examined. This compressor is not adjusted by being moved laterally through the casing, but it is adjusted by means of a sliding and rotating movement on a fixed pin, so that it can be moved horizontally or vertically to adapt it to hold larger or smaller bundles of or longer or shorter files.

e is the bolt for fastening the casing b in the casing a. It is fixed on the inner end of a pin, e, which passes through the front or outer wall of the inner casing. It is arranged at the outer lower end of the casing, and so that its end may be turned down through a small slot in the bottom of said casing and behind the rim or lip a, formed on the outer casing, a. On the outer end of the pin e there is fixed a suitable lip or flange, to which is hinged a lug, e which extends downward to and slightly laps over the rim a on the outer cas- 7o ing. The bolt e can be turned by turning the lug c and the inner casing be locked or unlocked, as may be desired.

fis a small lock fixed on the inner side of and near the lower end of the lug 6 A suitable key-hole is provided in the lug c and the lug is fastened by turning the bolt of the lock down behind a lip or other suitable retaining means on the lower rim of the inner casing, thereby locking the said inner casing so that8o it cannot be removed without the aid of the key f. When the lug f is locked in position shown and described it cannot be raised and used to draw the-bolt 0, so that it will be seen the lockin g of the two casings together is rendered secure. When unlocked the lug and lock turn outward together, and by them the bolt 6 is turned and the casing 12 drawn out of the casing a.

Having described my invention,what Iclaim,

and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a bill-file, a compressor supported on an arm or arms slotted and held and rotating on a pin on the innerside of the casing, and adjustable, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

2. In a bilLfile, the combination of an outer easing and an inner removable easing, with a hingetllugfixedtotheouterendoftheinnereasing, and a loek,f, fixed to the lug, and arranged so that when the lug is dropped down against the face of the bilLfile the bolt of the look may be thrown out and engage a suitably-arranged lip or projection and look the two casings securely together, substantially as set forth.

3. The combination, with the casing a, of the bolt re, placed on the inner side of the front end, and arranged to turn down through a slotin the bottom of the inner casing and behind a lip on the bottom of the outer casing, 

